With the Government's announcement that it will contribute $10 million in addition to local funding to
assist with the repair, restoration and strengthening of heritage and character
buildings in the Canterbury region, comes news that three buildings on
Wellington’s Willis street—all over 100 years old—are being demolished, without
any public notification.

“Why is it that even in the
midst of the devastation caused by an earthquake work is being done to save
buildings in Canterbury, but in Wellington bulldozers are ready to knock down
historic buildings without any consultation?” asks Labour Arts, Culture and
Heritage spokesperson Steve Chadwick.

“It is ironic that Wellington
wants to be considered the artistic capital of New Zealand, but there is no
thought given to protecting architecture in the city.”

The buildings due for
demolition are owned by Singaporean Grand Complex Properties, which plans
eventually to build a multimillion-dollar high-rise on the site, reports
stuff.co.nz.

“That’s one that’s not
surprising. They could have done something but at the end of the day it’s the
owner that calls the shot and unless there’s regulation to protect the
buildings, nothing can be done. The council had decided not to protect them.”

When it comes to the
tearing down of heritage buildings, he says the issue is often tied to
opportunistic development: “People take the opportunities to get rid of the old
and build new.”

He estimates that about 80 percent of New Zealand’s 10,000-plus heritage
buildings are privately owned, but he’s quick to point out that private owners
shouldn’t solely carry the onus of maintaining heritage properties.

“There are a massive
percentage of residential, commercial or industrial properties in private
ownership. The private owners carry the costs of maintaining these buildings
and until there’s some sort of incentive, like a grant scheme or tax incentive
for example, it’s not going to get better.

“Because there’s a public
interest in this issue there should be a publicly funded incentive. Some
council’s do have funds—like Wellington city and Christchurch— where owners can
apply for assistance in maintaining and strengthening buildings. But it’s very
uneven across council’s. Some council’s don’t have the funds.”

Central government, he says,
needs to get involved in supporting owners. “There is public interest
in private owners carrying out strengthening work but they need support to do
that.

“We’ve been raising this
issue for years now. We’ve been making noises and hopefully now in light of the
Christchurch earthquake there will be action."

When it comes to protecting
our heritage buildings, he says it’s quite simple. “It comes down to value,
significance and the contribution of heritage buildings towards New Zealand’s
identity.”

Strengthening and
preserving buildings ahead of time also saves the country money in the
long-term. “If you can strengthen buildings prior to disasters happening, that
means there will be less impact on the public purse following a disaster. You
won’t have as many claims to the Earthquake Commission. You won’t need a huge
$10 million dollar grant form Government. If you can sort it before it’s always
better.”

Auckland’s Britomart and Crown-owned
properties like the Beehive and the Wellington Railway Station, McClean says,
are all good examples of buildings that have been strengthened and well
preserved.

The New Zealand Historic Places
Trust has put together a guidance series (though it’s currently in its draft
stage) to assist local authorities, owners of heritage places, iwi and hapū and other stakeholders in the
protection and conservation of historic heritage under the resource Management
Act 1991 and other related resource management and planning legislation.
Comments and feedback on the draft guide are encouraged.

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